Criticism of the Inheritance Cycle
Anti-Eragonism refers to opposition towards the Inheritance cycle. The movement is largely comprised of young adults who believe that Christopher Paolini is a writer of less than average skill. Various groups and websites have been founded for this purpose since the first book, Eragon, was published. Derivative Similarities to Tolkien Many Anti-Eragonites hold that some of the story’s aspects come directly from J.R.R. Tolkien. The elves of both Tolkien and Paolini are tall, beautiful, immortal, and have keen senses. Additionally, these elves have strong bonds with nature and some live in the trees. As in Tolkien’s legendarium, Paolini’s elves came from a land over the seas, do not sleep, and the only way to death for them is through a wound or heartbreak. Another similarity is the quote of Paolini’s elvish queen Islanzadi, “I am diminished” and the quote of the Tolkien’s elvish queen Galadriel, “I will diminish.” Critics also see similarities in the dwarven race. The concept of a gruff, mining race is found in the works of both authors. The elves and dwarves in both cases do not get along. Many also see the forbidden love between Arya and Eragon as a reproduction of the love between Arwen and Aragorn. In addition to the good races of Alagaesia and Arda, “antis” also find similarities in the evil races. Many have made comparisons between the Ra’zac and Nazgul. Comparisons have also been made with the urgals and orcs as well as their elite counterparts the Kull and Uruk-Hai. Anti-Eragonites furthermore believe that Paolini directly copied names from the works of Tolkien or just switched some letters around. *'Angrenost' – king of the Broddring Kingdom :*'Angrenost' – elvish name for Isengard *'Ardwen' – lake of Alagaesia :*'Arwen' – elvish princess *'Arya' – elvish princess :*'Arwen' – elvish princess *'Eragon' – hero of Inheritance. :*'Aragorn' – a hero of the Lord of the Rings. *'Beor' – name of a mountain range in Alagaesia :*'Bëor' – one of the fathers of men *'Ceranthor' – an elvish monarch :*'Caranthir' – one of the sons of Fëanor *'Elessari' – a member of the Council of Elders :*'Elessar' – title of Aragorn *'Eridor' – a former dragon :*'Eriador' – a region of northern Middle-earth *'Furnost' – minor town in Alagaesia :*'Fornost' – a town in Middle-earth *'Gilderien' - an elvish prince :*'Gildor Inglorion' - an elvish noble *'Hadarac' – a desert in Alagaesia :*'Harad' – a desert in Middle-earth *'Imiladris' – an elvish queen :*'Imladris' – the elvish name for Rivendell *'Inzilbêth' – the province where Galbatorix was born :*'Inzilbêth' – a queen of Numenor *'Isenstar' – a lake of Alagaesia :*'Isengard' – a large fortress of Middle-earth *'Melian' – a town of Alagaesia :*'Melian' – a minor goddess and queen of Doriath *'Mithrim' – part of the name of a stone art piece :*'Mithrim' – a land of Beleriand *'Morgothal' – fire god of the Dwarves :*'Morgoth' – the evil god of the Silmarillion *'Rhunön' - an elvish smith :*'Rhun' - the eastern region of Middle-Earth *'Ûndin' – a dwarf chieftain :*'Fundin' – a dwarf warrior *'Vanilor' – a former dragon :*'Valinor' – the homeland of the elves and gods Similarities to Lucas “Antis” also claim that the plot line of Eragon is similar to that of Star Wars. Other Similarities Other than Lord of the Rings and Star Wars, Anti-Eragonites have found minor similarities elsewhere. The character of Elva has often been compared to the character of Alia Atreides from the Dune series. In the series Dragonriders of Pern, the dragons choose their riders and speak to them telepathically, as they do in Eragon. The dragon Tiamat also speaks telepathically in the book Jeremy Thatcher, Dragon Hatcher. Some critics also point out how the books include elements from the real world. The names Saphira and Gil'ead are in the Bible as Sapphira, a Christian who lied to God, and Gilead, a mountainous region of Judea. The common name for gedwëy ignasia is argetlam, which means silver hand. Airgetlam, often anglicised as argetlam, is directly out of the Lebor Gabala Erenn (The Books of Invasions of Ireland). In Old Irish it also means "silver hand". "Antis" have also noticed the likeness between Tronjheim, the capital of the dwarves, and Trondheim, a Norwegian city. Unrealistic Warfare The warfare and weaponry of Alagaesia has also come under scrutiny. Many noticed that the sword, Zar’roc, was five feet long and worn at the waist. This would have been far too large for a teenage boy. However, it seems in later editions the length of the sword was changed to three and a half feet. Some other critics believe that golden armor would be illogical as it would be soft and easily bendable. Some fans claim that the armor itself is a stronger metal covered with gold plating. Additionally, many feel that the massive poisoning carried out by Angela is unrealistic. Critical readers also noticed the lack of archers or cavalry among the ranks of the Empire. The trebuchets have also been the object of criticism, as they are used on a battlefield. This is highly ineffective as trebuchets are meant as siege weapons. “Antis” also feel that the description of the battles leave out the horrors of war and in a way glorify fighting. Language Anti-Eragonites also have found errors in both the story’s pseudo-archaic language and the Ancient Language itself. The bits of archaic English, such as aye, thee, thine, etc., are often used incorrectly. On page 367 in Eldest, Orik says, “What has put me in mine shtate?” “Mine” was only used before vowels, and thus this usage is incorrect. Additionally, the peoples of Alagaesia make a distinction between the pronouns thou and you, one being familiar and the other being respectful. However, many times they use both of these pronouns in the same sentence which is highly improper. Many critics believe this to be a result of lack of research on the part of the author. The Ancient Language itself has no distinct grammatical structure and this has become subject to further criticism. On pg. 294 in Eldest it reads: “You blessed a child in the ancient language?” asked Oromis, suddenly alert. “Do you remember how you worded this blessing?” “Aye.” “Recite it for me.” Eragon did so, and a look of pure horror engulfed Oromis. He exclaimed, “You used skölir! Are you sure? Wasn’t it sköliro?” Eragon frowned. “No, skölir. Why shouldn’t I have used it? Skölir means shielded. ‘…and may you be shielded from misfortune.’ It was a good blessing.” “That was no blessing, but a curse.” Oromis was more agitated than Eragon had ever seen him. “The suffix o forms the past tense of verbs ending with r and i. Sköliro means shielded, but skölir means shield. What you said was ‘May luck and happiness follow you and may you be a shield from misfortune.’” There are two problems with this explanation of the Ancient Language. Oromis says that skölir means shield and that you add –o to make it past. Shield in this case is a noun as evidenced by the translation, “a shield”; therefore, it cannot have a past tense. Some fans say that this is because "shield" can be a noun and a verb, as in English. If this is the case, many feel that this shows another example of the author translating the English language word for word without giving thought to the wide range of semantics. It has also been noted that by adding –o he did not make it past but made it passive. The phrase “be shielded” is in the present passive and not the past active. Another minor complaint is the use of names such as Islanzadi, Ra'zac, and Zar'roc which some feel look out of place in a Norse-based language. Domia abr Wyrda The Domia abr Wyrda from the Deluxe Edition of Eldest has not been free from criticism. Some find it full of inconsistencies and contradictions. The Domia abr Wyrda was supposedly written by a Heslant the Monk. However, no monastic organization was ever described before, and no human religion, other Worshipers of Helgrind, has ever been identified. Additionally, the Worshipers of Helgrind have a cathedral, which sounds out of place in a fantasy world. The Empire eventually burned Heslant as a heretic, though the Empire has no state religion. Many Anti-Eragonites consider this to be puzzling. They also question the random evil acts done by wicked kings. The Emperor Galbatorix burned libraries, and King Palancar attacked the Dragon Riders, both for no reason other than just being mad. Lastly, some find that the piece as a whole is not at all academic and sounds more like the rest of the book. Other Inconsistencies Other, more minor inconsistencies have been noticed in the series. When she was attacked, Arya magically transports the egg to the Spine. However, critics point out that if she possessed this ability, she could have transported the egg in the first place and not made the journey. Also, the book repeatedly informs the reader that Garrow is poor. However, Roran and Garrow are found eating chicken for breakfast, and Garrow is using his money to buy trinkets. Many critics believe this to be unrealistic. Also in Carvahall, there is the butcher shop of Sloan. The author describes it as being spotlessly clean. Many ‘antis’ hold that butcher shops are not clean, especially ones in a medieval setting. In the beginning of Eldest, the character Elain is five-months pregnant. At the end of the novel, she is pregnant with the same child. However, Eldest begins and ends in spring, making this impossible. Additionally, the elves are strict vegans; they refuse to eat meat and use animal products. Despite this, Arya is seen wearing a leather suit in Eragon. As revealed in Eldest, it is possible that Eragon may be Morzan’s son, as well as Murtagh, though this has been the subject of much fan speculation. Also in the synopsis of Eragon at the beginning of Eldest, it says that Eragon is fifteen and that Brom and Jeod stole the egg twenty years ago and killed Morzan in the process making a five year gap between his death and Eragon's birth, thus it makes no sense for Morzan to be Eragon's father. However, the same could be said for Murtagh; his 'last birthday' as of Eragon was his eighteenth, which would put his birth a year or two after Morzan's death if the ‘twenty years’ number is correct. Thus, if the ‘twenty years’ is not just an estimate or a ‘rounded up’ number of years (like saying 'last decade' to mean 'seven years ago'), it is impossible for Morzan to have thrown his sword at a three-year-old Murtagh. Critics believe this to be yet another mistake the author has made. Writing Style The criticism of the Inheritance Cycle is not limited to inconsistencies and imitation. The writing style of Christopher Paolini has also come under attack. Many feel that the writing is emotionless and unable to make the readers feel for the characters. His portrayal of Eragon, some believe, is unrealistic, and that Eragon does not cope with situations like a real human would. Additionally they believe the writing style is excessively ornate and flowery, such as this example from Eldest: '' “Every day since leaving the outpost of Ceris was a hazy dream of warm afternoons spent paddling up Eldor Lake and then the Gaena River. All around them, water gurgled through the tunnel of verdant pines that wound ever deeper into Du Weldenvarden. Eragon found traveling with the elves delightful. Narí and Lifaen were perpetually smiling, laughing, and singing songs, especially when Saphira was around. They rarely looked elsewhere or spoke of another subject but her in her presence. However, the elves were not human, no matter the similarity of appearance. They moved too quickly, too fluidly, for creatures born of simple flesh and blood. And when they spoke, they often used roundabout expressions and aphorisms that left Eragon more confused than when they began. In between their bursts of merriment, Lifaen and Narí would remain silent for hours, observing their surroundings with a glow of peaceful rapture on their faces. If Eragon or Orik attempted to talk with them during their contemplation, they would receive only a word or two in response.” '' The verbosity of this passage and others is the reason that many feel Paolini over describes certain settings or characters. Characterization Category:Real-life